The Fifty Year Tradition
Bonita vs. San Dimas: The Smudge Pot Football Game
The year 2022 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Smudge pot football game. The game is one of of the oldest high school football rivalries in Southern California.
Game Scores
Wins by Decade
School Total Smudge Pot Game Wins by Decade| Decade | Bonita | San Dimas | Ties |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2 | 6 | |
| 1980 | 3 | 6 | 1 (1987) |
| 1990 | 5 | 5 | |
| 2000 | 6 | 4 | |
| 2010 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2020 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total Wins | 26 | 24 | 1 |
Coaching Record
Table listing all the Smudge Pot games won sorted by CoachesThe 1970s were dominated by the new upstart San Dimas Saints. The Saints won 6 Smudge Pot Bowl games during the decade led by Coach Bob Biaz who won 4 of the games. Bonita won their first smudge pot in 1975 and the second under Coach Pete Lopez in 1979.
San Dimas Coach Don Warhurst won 5 Smudge Pot Bowl games (tied for first among Saint Coaches) through the late 1970s and early 1980s. With Bonita and San Dimas entering different leagues there was some concern that the Smudge Pot game tradition would end, however the game would continue as a non-league game. The 1987 game ended in the only tie 14 to 14.
The 1990s saw each school win 5 games each. Saint’s Coach Dean Bennet won 5 straight Smudge Pot games (tying a Saint record) though the late 80’s and early 90s while Bonita Coach Larry Hatley won 4 straight Smudge Pots and a CIF Championship in 1999.
Between 1996 and 2006, Bonita won 10 of 11 Smudge Pot games under Coaches Larry Hatley and Eric Podley. Saints Coach, Bill Zernickow, would win 3 straight Smudge Pots from 2007 to 2009. Over the aughts Bonita would win 6 of the games while San Dimas won 4.
The great irony of the 2010’s is even though Bonita won 7 Smudge Pot games against San Dimas, this was the most successful era of Saint’s football. Under Coaches Bill Zernickow and Mark Holman the Saints developed one of the strongest football programs in the valley winning CIF Championships in 2009 and 2013 and were CIF Finalists in 2015.
Legendary San Gabriel Valley football coach, Steve Bogan, took over the Bonita program in 2018 and won 3 straight Smudge Pot Games. The 2020 game was canceled because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Bonita won the 2021 game 28-14. The fiftieth anniversary game will be played in 2022 and the fiftieth game will be played in 2023.